Love is a Gamble
by yankeedoodle74
Summary: Chloe "borrowed" money from Oliver, but is now involved in a dangerous game to pay him back. Takes place between S.9's Conspiracy and Escape. My version of what happens between these 2 episodes. My 1st ever chapter story. Would love reviews/comments!
1. Chapter 1

I do not own any rights to the show Smallville or any of its characters. (Sad to say.)

I took direct dialogue from Conspiracy to set up my story and would like to credit the excellent writers, Al Septien and Turi Meyer.

Chapter 1

"Come on . . . concentrate," Chloe spoke out loud trying to get herself to focus on the computer in front of her. She stifled a yawn, then opened up her music file and picked a fast tempo song to play in hopes that it would help her stay alert. It wasn't making matters any better that not only was she struggling to stay awake, but when her mind was actually coherent, it kept wandering to a certain brown-eyed, blond haired man who had been invading her thoughts a lot lately. All of this was making it difficult to keep her attention on the important task she was working on.

Almost as if on cue, that very brown-eyed, blond walked into her apartment, and quickly, she closed the page on the screen.

"Just the interruption I was hoping for," Chloe said as she walked over to Oliver, quite pleased to see him. She knew she might as well forget about getting any work done today. She had other things on her mind now.

Oliver, curiously enough, did not say a word, but looked around the apartment, then walked over to her computer where he turned up the volume button, making the music she had been playing softly in the background, much louder.

He then walked over to her and drew his handsome face close to hers.

"I like where this is going Romeo, but you might want to put on some softer music," said Chloe, excitedly anticipating where this might lead. Instead he said something that seemed like it came out of left field.

"This is not a booty call."

Chloe blinked her eyes rapidly, rendered speechless by his comment.

"I think Tess Mercer might be listening," Oliver continued quietly, confusing Chloe even more.

"She is up to something and it involves you. She came by my office today with evidence that someone has been siphoning money from my company," he said straight forwardly.

"You're stealing from me."

"It's not like that," Chloe managed to say, the blood rushing from her face.

"Right. A lot of women have used me for my money. I never expected it from you," he answered, staring directly into her eyes.

"I wasn't stealing from you Oliver. I was borrowing the cash. I am buying insurance for the entire planet."

Chloe felt as though the wind had been knocked from her. She was certain she had covered all her bases with the "borrowing" of his money, and had expected to be able to rectify the situation before it was discovered; in fact, she had been working on that for a while now. It was what she had been dealing with when he came in.

Finally she managed to break from his steely gaze.

"Follow me," she said as she grabbed her coat and walked toward the door. "I will show you what your money can buy."

They both got into his car and drove off, with Chloe giving directions.

Other than an occasional, "turn here," it was an uncomfortably silent car ride, and the two arrived at an old junk yard and body shop just as night had fallen. She led him to an abandoned truck container. Chloe then took a key out of her pocket and unlocked the padlock that was wrapped around the door handles. She stepped back, and let Oliver open the doors. He walked inside and was shocked by what he saw.

Shining his flashlight around, he observed hundreds of crates lining the walls of the truck bed.

He rifled through some of the boxes. "Kryptonite weapons? This is what you've been spending all my money on? Something that can kill Clark?" he asked incredulously as he picked up a knife with the familiar green mineral.

"They're to protect all of us including Clark from Zod and all those other Kandorians," Chloe said as she too stepped inside the truck.

"I don't understand. I thought you were helping set them all up with licenses and passports," Oliver replied, still confused by her actions.

"All the Id's I gave Clark have computer tracking chips in them," Chloe confided.

Oliver looked at her in shock.

"I want to keep an eye on the visitors from another planet," she replied matter of factly.

"Well, welcome to _1984,_ the Sullivan edition," he said sarcastically.

"Look, Ollie I'm sorry, okay? But I didn't have a choice. Our friend's moral compass has gotten us lost more than once. I am not okay with just sitting back and trusting Clark again."

As much as it pained Chloe to say that, she just knew it was true. She would always be loyal to Clark, but his allegiance was torn right now. She was beginning to look towards a more hopeful future, and it felt good to feel alive again. She was not going to let Clark, the Kandorians, or anyone else mess that up.

Still trying to take this all in, Oliver shut the doors and locked it back up again. They got back in the car and drove off. Chloe was most definitely wide awake now.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

On the drive home, the melody of Chloe's ring tone on a cell phone she carried in her purse interrupted the uncomfortable silence that once again pervaded the car like a thick fog. _Shit_, she thought to herself as she fumbled around with the contents of her purse trying to find the phone; _Not now!_

She should not have been surprised that when she looked down to see who was calling, rather than a number, it simply read "Blocked." They were the only ones who had this number and of course they were not going to publish theirs. She did not want to answer the call with Oliver in such close proximity, but she knew she had no choice or she would miss this opportunity. Chloe quickly pressed the button.

"Hello," she said into the receiver.

Ms. Green?" the gruff voice inquired.

"Uh, why yes, it is," Chloe said back to him, still not used to the alias she had been using.

She had been expecting this phone call any day now, but because of the uncomfortable situation she found herself in with Oliver, she had been caught off guard. She glanced over at Oliver apprehensively.

"We have an opening. Eleven o'clock, tomorrow night. Sharp. Do you want the spot? I have to know now, because there are others waiting for it," the caller sharply spoke.

"Yes . . . yes. I will definitely be there. Thank you," Chloe hastily replied, hoping Oliver could not overhear her conversation.

"Okay same thing as before, sometime early tomorrow, you will receive another phone call with the location and password to get in. Make sure you don't forget it. You will not be allowed in otherwise." And with that the voice on the other end abruptly hung up.

"I will see you then. Thanks for fitting me in," Chloe spoke into the silent phone as she turned and nervously smiled at Oliver. "Hair appointment," she said to him, saying the first thing that came to her mind, as she pretended to press the button to end the call.

It was at that moment that they were pulling up to the Talon, and grateful to escape any questions he may have, Chloe quickly jumped from the car just as he put it in park and before he could turn the engine off. Normally she would not mind Oliver coming up with her to the apartment, after all, she still felt like they had things to resolve, but now she had to make some preparations for her "appointment" tomorrow night.

Standing on the curb, she held the door open and leaned back down into the car to speak to him.

"Listen Ollie, I want you to know I really am sorry about the money. I am sorry that I hid everything from you, but I had just planned to borrow it and I will pay you back. As soon as I can. I promise." She slammed the door and ran inside the building before Oliver could even speak a word.

"What the hell . . .?" Oliver muttered to himself, bewildered by Chloe's behavior and quick departure. "What is going on? Hair appointment, my ass."

Oliver did not hear everything that her mysterious caller had said, but he did catch the words, "eleven o'clock tomorrow night," and "password." What is going on with her, he wondered?

Chloe had been acting strange and a little secretive for awhile now, he realized, and she always appeared worn out, like she wasn't getting enough sleep. That was true enough when they were spending their nights together, but still, it didn't add up. She seemed very nervous about that phone call, and now that he thought about it, he realized that wasn't even her cell phone. It looked like one of those cheap, prepaid ones.

And just who gets their hair done at eleven at night? What did she need a password for? She was up to something, and from the way she spoke just then, he thought it had something to do with paying back the money. How the hell would she get her hands on that much anyways?

"Dammit, Chloe! It's not about the money," Oliver shouted out to no one but himself, at the same time pounding his fist on the steering wheel. He put the car in drive, but not before placing a phone call on his dashboard computer.

"What can I do for you," said the familiar voice on the other end. It was Dr. Emil Hamilton who had seen Oliver's caller ID on his phone.

"Hey, I know it is kind of late, but can you meet me at Watchtower in an hour?" asked Oliver as he looked at the clock knowing that he just had a little over twenty-four hours to find out what Chloe was up to.

"Yes, I'll leave right away," replied Emil much to Oliver's relief. "See you then." Emil had sensed a hint of anxiety in Oliver's voice, so he felt whatever he wanted must be important.

"Thanks, man," said Oliver as he pulled away from the curb.

Emil was a physician, but he was also brilliant when it came to computers. He was the only one besides Chloe, who Oliver knew could possibly help him right now. Well, there was also Tess, but there was no way in hell he would ask for her help. He didn't trust her as far as he could throw her. He figured that she had probably put the CFO on a hunt to find any misappropriations of the company's money, and that kind of pissed him off. He knew he had let things slide with the company in the past, but he still did not like her snooping around, even if it pertained to business matters. Because it ended up being Chloe who took the money, he almost would have rather not known.

Oliver had to admit he was shocked when he figured out that Chloe was the one behind the missing funds of his company. He had enjoyed over the years just what being a Queen meant - the riches, the fame, and all the perks that went along with that, but it also meant a lot of people tried to use him for those benefits, and especially when he was younger, it had been hard to know who is real friends were. Now he was much more cautious who he let into his world. And he had recently let Chloe in his world in a very big way.

But after the initial shock wore off, he knew that Chloe was not like other women or anyone else for that matter. Sure, sometimes her, as she had put it earlier, "moral compass" got a little out of whack, just like she claimed Clark's did; hell, his too, he had to admit. But when he got right down to it, Chloe didn't take the money for herself; she bought weapons.

_Always trying to save the world_, thought Oliver as he smiled slightly to himself. She may not have a supernatural ability like Clark, Bart, A.C., or Dinah, but he would put her up against them any day of the week. She certainly gave them all a run for their money in the hero department.

His sense of betrayal, however, had come from the fact that she had not confided in him about her plan. The two of them had a long history together. There were times of distrust early on, but over the years, as they worked side by side, they had gained each other's respect. And sure, she can drive him absolutely insane like no one else can, which he admitted she was basically doing to him now, but it was mostly because she could be so stubborn and independent minded, wanting to do things her own way and never admitting she might need help. But he felt that their circumstances had evolved now, to the point where they could tell each other anything.

Despite the fact that she had embezzled from his company, the eye-opening, thunderbolt revelation for him was, there was not another single person in the entire world he trusted more than Chloe. No one. He trusted her with his life.

It was many months ago, when after blaming himself for the turn of events that led to her husband and his friend, Jimmy's death, he began a downward spiral of addiction, gambling, fighting, and casual sex, all wrapped up, and not neatly, he would add, in an alcoholic haze, literally landing himself in the gutter. He gave up on being the Green Arrow; gave up on himself; gave up on life.

He had even been prepared to take his own life, stepping off what he thought was a pressure plate with a bomb underneath that the Toyman had rigged. The experience left him feeling as if his whole life was as much a fake as the bomb turned out to be.

Yet, Chloe, who had lost more than anyone, did not write him off. Her stubbornness came into play, and because of it, she had not given up on him, even when others had. She devised an elaborate plan to get him to face his inner demons, make him become the hero she always knew him to be. He trusted her with his life because . . well, she quite literally had saved it.

During that period, he strangely found himself longing for a relationship with Lois again. But he came to the conclusion that he was just lonely, tired of casual encounters, and to him, Lois seemed safe and familiar. He thought she could fill that emptiness he felt inside of him. Thankfully she turned him down, said she didn't love him, which was in fact, a blessing, because it finally dawned on him that he wasn't even in love with her.

Had he just followed where his heart had been trying to lead him for quite some time, he would have found himself drawing toward Chloe like a moth to a flame. Unfortunately, his brain had been a little slow to comprehend. He had been hanging around Watchtower more and more, not realizing at the time that it was Chloe who he was looking for all along. She had been right there in front of him all this time and was so many things to him, as his friend and his sidekick, he just couldn't grasp that she could be something more. The heart and the head finally got in sync the night he was target practicing at the tower, though.

Oliver pressed his foot on the accelerator as he thought back to that night.

The timing was right for what he believed fate must have had intended all along. She was in his arms, her skin soft to his touch. He was showing her how to shoot an arrow and when she made the bulls-eye, she turned excitedly towards him. The two of them looked into each other's eyes, and it was like a bolt of lightning struck. They shared a night of intensity and emotion that still made him smile weeks later. He had never experienced anything like that before, and with his history with women, it had certainly not been from a lack of trying.

It was like he knew in an instant that she was the one he had been waiting for his entire life. He woke up that next morning and every morning since, to the fact that he didn't feel empty inside anymore. Usually, after a hook-up, he couldn't get away from the girl fast enough. With Chloe, he never wanted to leave her side ever again. With each passing day, he was fully cognizant of the fact that he was falling head-over-heels in love with her. Now he just had to be patient till she would admit that she felt the same way.

She tried to make it seem like it was just a hook-up between two lonely people, but he was convinced that she was just too emotionally scarred to admit to him and herself that it was much more than that. This was when her independent streak came into play. But for him, there was absolutely no way he was going to let her out of his life. This was why he had to find out what she was planning tomorrow night. He had a bad feeling about it.

Pulled out of his thoughts as he arrived at the Watchtower just then, he hastily parked the car, and ran inside to await Emil's arrival.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Chloe quickly opened the door to her apartment, slammed the door, then resting her back up against it, tried to catch her breath. The events of the day swirled in her mind threatening to overwhelm her.

_Breathe, Chloe. Just breathe_, she reminded herself.

Things had not turned out the way she had hoped when Oliver had come over earlier in the afternoon. She had envisioned a much different outcome than this one. She saw the look in his face today. She had let him down; deceived him.

Chloe had all along justified her actions, by convincing herself it was for the good of the world. She had not confided in Oliver thinking that he would not have agreed to her plan, particularly the part about keeping Clark in the dark. The problem with their hero friend was that even though he had super powered vision, he was just unable or unwilling to see how dangerous the Kandorians were becoming; how they were not to be trusted.

She felt as though she had no choice but to take matters into her own hands. After all, Lois had gone to the future and seen their certain demise at the hands of these Kandorians. Chloe was not about to go quietly to that destiny and somehow the thought of something terrible happening to Oliver, frightened her more than the thought of her own death.

She and Oliver couldn't have come from more different backgrounds, but they shared a common sense of purpose in life. When many months ago, he had lost his purpose, she knew Oliver was still a hero deep down, with or without his secret identity as Green Arrow. She just had to get him to see it too. She was still reeling from the death of Jimmy, and she just couldn't bear the thought of losing someone close to her again. And she too, knew what it was like to hit rock bottom. She had been there herself.

Nevertheless, she was grateful when he finally came around. And when he held her hand and thanked her outside the coffee shop, she felt the spark of something go through her. For some unknown reason it stirred in her feelings for Oliver she hadn't even known existed. She however, pushed aside these emotions like she always did.

And it was a very good thing she had, because all along Oliver had still been pining for Lois. She could see it in his eyes the way he looked at his old girlfriend, and she wouldn't admit even to herself that it was a painful thing to watch from afar. Chloe was actually surprised at her reaction to how she felt about that, and then to the relief she felt when she knew that Lois wasn't in love with Oliver; she was falling in love with Clark. There was a day when she would have been devastated to have her cousin whom she adored, fall for the man of her dreams. But interesting enough, Clark had ceased to be that man to her a long time ago.

Then one night, Oliver was shooting arrows at Watchtower when she walked into the tower full of disillusionment. It was strange that she had worked so hard to get him to see he had a life worth living for, when she had been the one barely existing. It took an encounter with a little boy in the body of a superhero to see she had just been going through the motions of life. But it's funny how things can change in one instant.

She still blushed at the thought of that night. All her pent-up desires and emotions exploded together like a chemistry experiment gone wrong. But nothing had ever felt so right. _Was it fate?_ Or was it just two people who were alone in life wanting to have some fun and just forget about life stresses. Heaven knows they both had a lot of that.

From that day on, she tried to not have any expectations when it came to Oliver, but she looked forward to each new day, with it bringing the hope of just being with him, even if it didn't end up intimately, although it most often did. Just like today, when she had been so excited when he walked into her apartment. _Why do I feel such a connection to him? Why am I dreaming of him every night?_

She took off her coat, and went over to her computer, booting it back up and returning to the site she had been viewing previously when Oliver had arrived.

_Stop it, Chloe. You are acting like a dumb schoolgirl_, she thought to herself. _You cannot fall in love with Oliver. You will just get hurt_.

Shaking her head to try to clear her mind, she walked towards the kitchen. She knew it was going to be a long night. She had better make a big pot of coffee.

_But first things, first_, she told herself. Oliver had said earlier that Tess might be listening. How, she did not know, but she did a quick search of her apartment to make sure there weren't any bugs planted. She would not put it past that bitch to do something like that, but was relieved when she didn't find any. There was certainly no love lost between the two women. She was just sorry that Oliver shared a past with Tess. They would probably always have a connection.

Now she had to get down to business. There was a lot to do before tomorrow night came around.

She just had to get Oliver's money back. Her plan had to work. She thought back to his words to her earlier today and the way he had looked at her. She couldn't bear the thought of disappointing him again. And she was literally gambling on paying him back.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Oliver was powering up the computers as Emil entered the tower.

"So what's up, Oliver?" He asked.

"I need your help. I need you to hack into Chloe's computer." Oliver replied to the bewildered doctor.

"You want me to do what?" Emil asked disbelievingly. "Chloe?"

"I wouldn't ask you to do this if I didn't think that she might be in danger," Oliver hastily replied. "I think she may be involved in something way over her head, and the only way to possibly find out what she is doing is search her computer and also the databases here that she uses. Can you do that?"

"Well, I can try, but knowing Chloe, she probably has put up a million firewalls. It may take some time; if you are sure you want me to do it."

"Yes, I am." Oliver assured the still skeptical doctor. "It's not like she hasn't done some of the same things to all of us, may I remind you."

"That is true," Emil agreed. "I just thought you and Chloe were . . ." he left the sentence unfinished. "I will get on it right away." He was very loyal to Oliver, so he just accepted his explanation, without another thought.

"Thanks." said Oliver, gratefully.

"What exactly are you looking for?" Emil asked, as he began to type away on the keyboard.

"Anything that would explain where she may be going tomorrow night. And anything having to do with a very large sum of money."

"Sorry that I have to run out on you right now," Oliver continued, "but I have to see about moving a very large load. I'll check back in with you later to see how you're coming with things." He then headed out the door, leaving Emil to just shake his head.

Oliver popped his head back in the doorway, and as an afterthought spoke again to Emil, "I just want to reiterate; we _have_ to find out what Chloe is up to before tomorrow night at eleven." And again he disappeared out the doorway.

"That really is not much time-" Emil tried say, but Oliver was gone before he could finish.

Once more, he shook his head. _Working with the two of them is never boring._ He began typing again, but more rapidly.

He was quite certain he had noticed a change in their relationship lately, but felt maybe they did not want to make it public. He had gotten the feeling that they were more than friends and colleagues the last time he had seen them together, the way they were looking at each other. He didn't think any of the rest of team had picked up on it, but he had. Maybe because that was how he and his late wife used to behave. He typed away, trying to mentally push back those long ago buried feelings.

_Sure took them long enough_. He could see from the very beginning that Oliver and Chloe were a great team and they would make an even better couple. He had all along believed that they were made for each other.

He questioned Chloe's "Big Brother" methods sometimes, but he could see that she always had the greater good in mind, and he admired that. Now it was his turn to be the "Big Brother." He had a feeling this was going to be quite a challenge. She was very good at what she did . . . but then again so was he.

He rolled up his sleeves, loosened his tie, and said aloud, "Let's see what you have been up to, Miss Sullivan."

Emil knew that sometimes you will lie and keep secrets to protect the ones you love. He figured that was probably exactly what Chloe was doing now.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

The sunlight was just peeking through the blinds of the window, shining its light onto her closed eyes, which caused Chloe to jump from her sound sleep. "Dammit," she said, angry at herself for nodding off. She had been at the computer most of the night preparing for tonight.

She still had a lot to do, but couldn't shake the nagging feeling that she should go back to the junk yard and check on the arsenal of weapons. She had invested a lot more than just Oliver's money on that artillery. Her relationship with him seemed to be on the line as well. _I'll just_ _run there right now and then come back here and get ready_, she thought.

She threw on some clothes, then looking into the mirror; she hastily ran a brush through her hair. She then grabbed her coat and quickly jumped into her car and raced to the scrap metal yard. In all her hurry, the usual perceptive Chloe did not notice Oliver pull out in his car and follow her.

When she got there, she was glad she had followed her intuition, as she saw Tess and one of her employees leaving the now empty truck bed.

_That bitch took the weapons_, she thought to herself!

"Whatever they are spending that money on, you find it," she heard Tess yell, which made her realize that Tess didn't seem to know where the weapons were either; or even that there had been weapons in the trailer, for that matter. _What the hell is going on here?_ she wondered

As soon as they drove away, she stepped out from behind another truck ready to go investigate.

She was surprised when Oliver appeared from behind her.

"I figured Tess was up to something, when she gave me the tip about all the money that you, um . . . ha, borrowed, so I moved your stockpile," he said to her sarcastically, not willing to let her off the hook too easily, but glad he followed his gut during the night about Tess.

"So what other dirty little tricks do you think the amazing Mercer has up her sleeve?"

"It's too soon to tell." He paused, before continuing. "Clark saw a future that we want to run away from; said Tess saw the same future. Maybe she wants to take us there."

"Which is why we need those weapons now more than ever. Where did you put them?" she asked.

"They're in a safe place."

"Are you keeping me in the dark because I lied to you?" Chloe asked incredulously.

"Well, you know Chloe; you can't have a set of rules for yourself, and then a whole other set of rules for everyone else."

"Clark's in the Kandorian family now and I don't want to let his loyalties lead us into another Doomsday scenario," she replied emphatically.

"Neither do I," said Oliver gently. He sure as hell didn't want anything like that to happen again.

"So do you really think we should tell Clark everything?"

"Absolutely." He saw her pained expression, then added, "But only when the time is right."

Chloe was glad that Oliver seemed to agree with her about not telling Clark about the weapons; at least not yet. She really believed in her gut, that it was best to keep Clark in the dark as far as this whole thing was concerned.

She on the hand, didn't like being left out of the loop, even if she had purchased the weapons using Oliver's money without his knowledge. Chloe decided not to press the matter any further. She knew there was no use in standing there arguing with him; and right now, she needed to get back to her apartment. She certainly didn't want to get another phone call in front of him. It was hard enough trying to cover for it last night.

"Just make sure you keep those weapons safe. Who knows when we may need them? Again, I am sorry about the deception, but you'll thank me later when this is all over," she said over her shoulder as she headed towards her car.

Oliver ran to catch up with her. "Where are you going?" To your hair appointment?" he asked.

"Uh . . . yeah, later. I've got some things to do first. See you," she said, smiling weakly as she climbed into her car and hurriedly started it up.

Oliver stood in the middle of the road and watched as she drove away. "Oh yeah. . . you sure will," he said to himself.

He was glad he had found the opportunity earlier to put a tracking device on her car. In fact, he had just placed it on and gotten back into his car, when he saw her get into her's that morning. Even though he could have traced her whereabouts on his car computer, he had decided to follow her anyways. He was not really surprised when she came back here. _She always wants to be in control_, he thought.

_Well you're not quite fully in control now, Chloe._ "Welcome to _1984, _the Queen edition," he said aloud, as her car disappeared out of sight.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

When Chloe arrived back at her apartment, she realized she was quite exhausted from everything. She knew she had to be on top of her game tonight, and that she had another long night ahead of her, so she laid down for a quick nap. She set her alarm because she had to make the most of her time, and of course kept her cell phone nearby, not knowing when she would receive the phone call giving her the instructions for tonight's event.

She awoke later, still a bit groggy, but knew she could rely on her good old standby, coffee, and went to make a fresh pot. While it was brewing, she jumped in the shower, again, keeping the phone on the counter, just in case the call came.

Afterwards, wrapped in a towel, she went back into the kitchen poured herself a cup of hot coffee, then went directly to her bedroom closet. She reached up to the top shelf, behind some shoe boxes and pulled down a Styrofoam shaped head that held a wig with long auburn hair. She placed it on her dresser. She rifled through the dresses she had purchased at the high-end second hand shop that were now hidden far back behind all her other clothing. She didn't think Lois would ever go in her closet to borrow any clothes; they were different sizes after all, but she didn't want to take any chances. This time she decided to wear a shimmery emerald green cocktail dress with a low-cut neckline.

"Time to become Olivia Green again," she said aloud, shaking her head as she was still a little embarrassed by the alias she had chosen for herself. It was a close connection to Oliver's name and his secret identity, she had realized soon after choosing it, but once she committed to using it, there was no going back. She clearly had him on the brain.

She now sat down at her vanity to begin the transformation. She was getting faster and better at applying her makeup, with each time she got into character.

It was while she was busy with all her preparations that the cell phone rang. Once again, the noise almost caused her to jump out of her skin, even though she knew it was coming.

"Ms. Green?" replied the same gruff voice she remembered from last night.

"Yes, this is she," Chloe replied, steadying her voice.

"Tonight you will go to one, zero, zero, one, Central Avenue; the Ace of Clubs. Go up to the top floor dining area. There is a reservation for you in your name for ten o'clock. Order whatever you would like; it is on the house. At ten minutes till eleven, ask to speak to the Sommelier; His name is Paschal. Tell him you want to see the wine collection. When he asks you if there is a particular bottle you are interested in, you reply _Chateau Margaux_. He will then take you to where you need to go," and just like that, the call ended.

Chloe had learned from the first time, you had to pay attention, because there was no repeating the instructions. And it was a good thing she had done her homework, because a few months ago, she didn't even know that a Sommelier was a wine expert at a fine restaurant.

_Not bad for a girl who grew up in Smallville_, she thought to herself as she resolutely got back to her preparations for this evening's adventure.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Oliver ran into Watchtower, to find Emil still at the computer, looking a little bit disheveled this time, with his sleeves rolled up, and his tie off and the top of his shirt unbuttoned. He had on the desk next to him, a large Styrofoam cup of coffee, and some discarded wrappers from food.

"What have you found out?" Oliver eagerly asked the man.

"Well, it has taken me most of the night and part of this day to find this," Emil said, as he pointed to the large screen on the wall.

"Who is that?" Oliver inquired not recognizing the person or the name on the copy of the driver's license that was now projected onto the screen.

"Let me zoom in," Emil said. "Recognize her now?"

It took him a moment, but it finally dawned on Oliver that the woman he was looking at, with the reddish colored hair and with the name, Olivia Green, was actually Chloe. He could tell it was her by her eyes. He had been staring deeply into them the last several weeks and knew the shape and color of them by heart.

"What the hell?" he muttered aloud to himself.

Emil patiently filled him in. "It appears that Chloe has created another identity. Once I discovered this, I was able to find out other information about this Olivia Green that apparently she invented. She has created a whole paper trail dedicated to her" he stated, as he pressed a button on the keyboard which then put more documents up on the screen. "And by the way, do you get her homage to you?"

"What? What do you mean?" a very confused Oliver asked, hardly able to pull his eyes away from the screen, trying to process all this information.

"Olivia Green. . . Oliver Queen. . . Green Arrow. It's like it is a compilation of your name and your secret identity," Emil revealed.

"Why exactly has she created this other person?" Oliver asked, finally pulling his gaze from the screen to look over at Emil.

"Well, it took me quite a while, but I was able to discover that Chloe, or Olivia I should say, has gotten herself involved in a gambling ring spearheaded by Metropolis' own mob boss, Bruno Mannheim."

"She's what?" Oliver practically shouted.

"She is participating in gambling events that the organized crime ring has set up all around Metropolis at various establishments," Emil replied in his always calm voice.

He went on to explain, "The way it works is this. You express a desire to gamble, prove your net worth, and if they accept you, you get invited to their underground casinos, which are merely out of sight locations that change all the time making it harder for the police to be aware of their existence and track them down. There, they have set up various games of poker, roulette, blackjack; you name it, they've got it. It is considerably high stakes with some very big payoffs but also some very big losses, which the mob is counting on in order to make their fortunes. From what I found breaking into their data bases, our very own Chloe, as Olivia Green of course, has participated in two games so far and walked away the big winner both nights."

"I get the feeling that is not a good thing in this case, is it?" Oliver asked apprehensively.

"No, it is indeed not," Emil said. "She has received an invitation to a game tonight. It is being held in a secret room at the Ace of Clubs."

"Yeah, I overheard someone talking to her on the phone last night mentioning eleven o'clock, and he said the word 'password which I assume you must have to get in. Any chance you can secure an invitation for myself? Can you speed me through the process?" Oliver asked.

"Well, I can possibly add your name to the list. That is going to take some more time. Although your riches as the head of Queen Industries would surely get you accepted, I however, recommend you use an alias and go in disguise as well. These are not exactly friendly people you are dealing with and it is probably best that you as yourself not get involved with this. Also, I will still have to crack the password that will permit you entry into the casino tonight."

"Well, keep working on it. I just have to get in."

"Yes, you do," Emil agreed. "Because there is one more thing I need to share with you. Olivia Green's name has been flagged for tonight's game."

"What the hell does that mean?" Oliver asked emphatically.

"I'm not exactly sure, but I think it means they are not happy she is winning so much money from them and they would like to eliminate her from the competition. . . literally."

"Shit," Oliver replied gravely. "Emil, you've got to get me in there. It looks likes Chloe has gotten herself in way over her head."

"Why do you think Chloe is gambling in the first place? It certainly doesn't seem like something she would do. And if she needed money, why wouldn't she come and ask you?" Emil asked Oliver.

"Yeah, you would think so." Oliver replied, shaking his head as he was still struggling with her deception. He did not want to have to explain it all to Emil just yet, as he did not fully understand it himself. "But, about getting me in the game . . .?"

"On it as we speak," Emil said, turning his full attention back to the computer screen.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

It wasn't long before Chloe was almost completely ready; just a few finishing touches left to do. She stopped for a moment in front of the hallway mirror, and gazed again at the unfamiliar figure that looked back at her. She was still shocked at how different she looked with long, darker hair. The dress combined with the high heels made her seem much taller, and with the makeup she applied, she thought she definitely looked older.

She clasped a necklace around her neck, amazed at how much it sparkled. Even the man at the pawn shop where she purchased the costume jewelry piece was surprised at how realistic it looked, almost like a real diamond necklace. All this effort was in trying to give her the appearance of wealth. At least her earrings were real diamonds, a long ago graduation gift from her father, Gabe, one that she knew probably cost him a lot of money, she thought guiltily.

She almost put on the diamond ring that Jimmy had given her when they became engaged, but she couldn't bring herself to do that. It still was horribly painful for her to think that he had died at the hands of Davis, saving her life, when she had just been trying to do what she thought was the right thing for everyone involved. She later determined that had she been honest with herself and with Jimmy, marrying had been a huge mistake. It hadn't been fair to either one of them. She had loved him, but for some reason she never could open herself fully to him. Much as she thought so at the time, he had just not been her soul mate; if there was such a thing. She was thinking about that more and more lately.

The ring, though cherished, was a painful reminder to that time. But now, shaking off the sadness, she knew it was time to add her most important accessory.

She went back into her bedroom and opened a dresser drawer. Hidden beneath all her undergarments was a black velvet box, which she preceded to pull out from its hiding place. Setting the box on top of the dresser, she opened it and then gently took the shiny metal object out and held it up to look it over.

It was a small gun, a .38 Special revolver. She opened up the cartridge on the side of the gun and taking bullets from the velvet box, carefully added them to the chambers. Double-checking that everything was ready and safe, she then grabbed a garter belt from the drawer and after lifting up her dress, she pulled the belt up past her knee. The belt had a holster to it, which she then attached the gun to on the inner part of her thigh. It always was a bit uncomfortable when it would rub up against her other leg, but her dress was rather form-fitting and she couldn't risk placing it on the outer part of her thigh, as the bulge would show. Once in place, she pulled the dress back down, and smoothed out the wrinkles.

She normally liked using her wits or her natural physical strength whenever she faced off with her enemies, but she knew she was dealing with some really corrupt people who basically had no morals, so she had to essentially step up her game a little. She had gone out and purchased the gun from a dealer shortly after Jimmy died, back when she shut herself up in Watchtower. The team had scattered, Lois was missing, and Clark had refused her request to use the Legion ring and go back in time to save Jimmy. It was only recently that she was beginning to realize that maybe all things happen for a reason, but back then she was despondent and felt very much alone and vulnerable.

During that dark period of time in her life, she had become almost paranoid, and had once pulled the gun on Emil Hamilton when he showed up at the Watchtower unannounced. She had also been having trouble sleeping, and one particular night, when she had been lying in bed tossing and turning for hours, she thought she had heard a noise. Startled, she quietly went to get the gun, and then made a thorough search of the tower. She never did find anything, and went back to bed, taking the gun with her. In that depressed and agitated state she was in, she had a brief thought, for just a moment, that life wasn't worth living anymore, and how easy it would be to just end things. She had the means right there in her hand and probably no one would miss her anyways, because they had all disappeared from her life, in one way or another.

But, absolutely mortified and frightened by that thought, she vowed to never think that way again. She was ashamed at the weakness she showed even for just the briefest of moments. She vowed to never be that fragile ever again. She was a Sullivan, for heaven's sake, from a strong, stubborn, Irish family; she was most definitely not a quitter, no matter how dire the circumstances may be.

She never told anyone about that incident. But that had been _her_ rock bottom. It was why she understood Oliver so well, and what he had gone through during his downward spiral. And it was why she hadn't given up on him; she would never give up on him.

The very next morning, she put the gun safely away and made it her mission to get the team back together, throwing herself back into that endeavor. Chloe hadn't touched the gun again; there just wasn't any need to, till now. She knew she was now mentally strong and had a new respect for the weapon. And she had to realistically think she just might need the extra protection. She had gone to firing ranges and was quite proficient at using one. She was pretty certain they would maybe check her purse, so she bought the holster so she could keep the gun hidden. And her instinct had been right; both times she had gone so far, they had looked into her purse, before they would allow her to enter.

She never drove her own car to the gambling sites, not wanting to be seen driving there and someone possibly tracing the car back to her. Besides, she didn't exactly drive a fancy, expensive car like "Olivia" probably would. Earlier she had placed a call for a taxicab to come pick her up, and now she found herself pacing the room frequently looking out the window. _C'mon, let's get the show on the road_, she thought to herself.

Chloe opened up her purse, checking again for what seemed like the hundredth time, making sure the thick envelope she put in there earlier was still there, and breathed a sigh a relief to see that it was.

When the cab finally arrived, she hurried down the stairs, looked carefully around, then got into the backseat.

"One-oh-oh-one, Central Avenue, please," she told the driver and settled into the seat for the long drive downtown to the Ace of Clubs.

Unbeknownst to her, Oliver was again carefully hidden out of sight waiting for her in his car. He almost missed her altogether, at first not recognizing the woman who came out of the building and jumped into the cab which had just moments ago pulled up to the curb. Even though Emil had shown him that picture of Chloe's alias, to see her in person, and dressed like she was, had taken him by surprise.

"Damn. . . . Chloe." he exclaimed, whistling to himself. Despite her disguise, Oliver knew Chloe rather intimately and would have recognized her curvy figure even if he hadn't been tipped off beforehand. He was amazed at how she looked, though. He, on the hand, thought his disguise left a little to be desired. It basically consisted of just a dark haired wig, a fake mustache, and a western style suit as opposed to the Italian designer ones he preferred. There just hadn't been much time to prepare. The main thing was just to get in there and get her out as quick as possible.

"And you called a cab?" he muttered to himself, not anticipating this. He had placed the tracking device on her car this morning with the intention of using it to find out where she was headed, in case Emil couldn't discover the location of her so-called "appointment" tonight, but also so he could keep track of her; keep her on his radar, so to speak. Now he was grateful he had been restless and come to the Talon early to wait. He took a deep breath, as he pressed on the gas pedal. He just did not want her out of his sight. He already knew where she was headed but there was no telling what or when the mob might try something on her.

He was still impressed how Emil had come through in such a big way, managing to hack into Chloe's and the Metropolis' organized crime rings computers in under twenty-four hours. He created an identity for Oliver, placed his alias' name on the invitation list, and helped him with a disguise.

_I have got to give that guy a raise_.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

As Chloe sat in the back of the taxi, unaware that she was being followed, she found herself absentmindedly gazing out the window. As the miles raced past her, her mind began racing as well. She thought back to what put her here in this position in the first place, on her way to a casino dressed in this disguise . . . .

. . . . It was shortly after she met Jor-El at the Kent farm when she began to really distrust Zod and the Kandorians. When Lois had returned after having been missing for weeks, it had also been slowly revealed to her what Lois had seen in the future with the Kandorian takeover of the planet. While she had been proud to learn that she led a resistance force against their army, other unsettling details emerged from that time period and she knew she could not put her trust in Clark alone to fix things.

Clark had been just too conflicted between the two worlds to see things clearly. And while she understood that he wanted to basically help both races, she was partial to the human one. She knew the only way she could gain the upper hand over the Kandorians was through their weakness to Krypton. She knew she had to get her hands on a lot of Kryptonian weapons. . . fast. She had told Oliver it was insurance for the entire planet and she wholly believed that to be true. These weapons would be their safety net.

She began a thorough search and finally found an arms dealer willing to part with his cache of weapons for a very large sum of money. Chloe had absolutely no time to lose, as there were other interested buyers waiting in the wings, so she did the first thing that came to her mind and diverted money from several Queen Industries accounts to pay the dealer and then kept a smaller amount aside.

This was what she carried on her now in the large envelope in her purse. She was using this money to make money. It was how she was going to pay the "borrowed" money back, all part of her big plan.

It wasn't too hard with her work she had done at the Isis Foundation and now at Watchtower to find contacts that would lead her to the right people to put her plan in action. She hung out with a lot of super-type heroes, but she also had encountered a lot of her fair share of the underworld variety. And so she infiltrated a mob-owned gambling ring and through some manipulations with her keyboard, got "Olivia Green" invited to very high stakes games held in private casinos, ones that were hidden behind closed doors at various different Metropolis locations, such as high-end restaurants and nightclubs and always held late at night and into the early morning hours.

Not just anyone could get into these places. They had to be quite affluent to begin with and only through a solicitation from those in charge.

She had made up this alias of a rich, spoiled socialite and created an identity for her in case somebody did a background check, which she was certain they would. Besides, she felt it was safer to be in disguise. She started with the name, and then basically developed a whole history for "Olivia." The Green family had made their money in the pharmaceutical industry and she had attended the prestigious boarding school, Kingston Hall, a sister school to Excelsior Academy where Oliver and Lex both went. After graduation, she traveled the world on her parents' money, and became quite adept at gambling in such far off locales as Monaco and Singapore.

She had struggled with ways to return Oliver's money, but thankfully she hadn't fallen too far off the moral wagon to know that she didn't want to take money from innocent people. And besides, she looked into going to various legal gambling venues, but their payouts were just not big enough. She knew she had to turn to illegal ones where the winnings were much higher, so she could put the money back into Queen Industries accounts as soon as possible. She could certainly take money from criminals and their wealthiest of patrons that frequented their establishments, though.

She especially was able to justify her actions because the top crime boss in Metropolis was a man named Bruno Mannheim.

Bruno had once been just another local thug involved in petty crimes. He and his partner-in-crime, A.J., once mugged her, stealing her purse, car and her most important possession, her computer, which at the time contained some very important Justice League information on it. This incident had occurred when Lois made her debut as Stiletto. It was thankfully, for everyone involved, a very brief venture into the superhero realm for Lois.

Although, Bruno got away, A.J. had been arrested. He made bail, though, and unfortunately for him, he came after her again and tried to cut her throat. This was most disastrous for A.J., because Davis, in his Doomsday state, brutally attacked and killed him. While she was grateful Davis saved her life, the savage way in which he did it, was disturbing, to say the least. She can still remember the sickening and frightening feeling she had as she took A.J.'s remains to the dumpster in black trash bags. Just thinking about it now, made her shudder.

Bruno, in the meantime, had killed Ron Milano, who at the time was the owner of Ace of Clubs, and essentially took over the reins of the club, his counterfeiting ring, and the mob. He had also been Jimmy's boss when he had gotten a job as a bartender there, after their very brief marriage and divorce. And lastly, he had beaten Jimmy up, trying to get information about Stiletto from him.

_No, I have absolutely no qualms taking money from that asshole._

The key to all this, her grand scheme, had been something that she had been noticing for some time now. About a year ago when Braniac had infected her, her brain had become like a computer and the result of that had been infinite amounts of knowledge at her disposal. That part she liked. She had always prided herself on the fact that she was an intelligent woman, but his superhuman acumen was unbelievable. Of course when he took total control over her, she was grateful that he had been extracted. She lost the computer-like brain function of course, but over time and in an ever so subtle way, she realized her memorization skills were much sharper than before. She couldn't exactly explain it, but she just felt as though her brain was left a bit more organized after Braniac left it, a residual effect from the infection, she imagined. Over time, she recognized the fact that she was particularly good with numbers.

She got an idea one night when she couldn't fall asleep. She started flipping through channels on the television and saw a poker game. The participants were winning some serious money. She started doing research, and like everything else she does, dove right in, learning the different techniques and ways to play blackjack and several of the poker games such as Texas Hold-Em and Seven Card Stud, practicing both day and night on her computer. She honed her skills at online gambling sites, winning large pots in games, which of course was just imaginary money. It wasn't long before she felt ready to try for real cash.

What became of particular interest to her was counting cards and she discovered that it came easy to her; remarkably so. Not particularly illegal per se, but it could get her into trouble as it put her at a definite advantage in card games. No one likes to lose money, particularly the mobsters in Metropolis. Her hope was that because she could process the cards so quickly in her mind, they wouldn't even realize she was even doing it. At most casinos, if they suspect someone is card counting they can ask you to leave their establishment and not come back. She had the feeling the mob wouldn't be so kind.

She never knew when she would get an invitation to a game through a phone call, so she had to carry around a cell phone she bought specifically for this purpose, not wanting to give out her real phone number. This was her third time she had been called. She never knew ahead of time what game she would get to play. She would only find out once she got there.

The first time it happened, she was directed to go the Club Atlantis and she had no idea what to expect. She ended up at a spot at the Blackjack table. She was actually very nervous, all this so new to her, and it was kind of hard to concentrate on the cards, but she took a shot of whiskey to calm her nerves, thought about how she was doing this for Oliver and ended up playing quite well. She performed the part of the wealthy Olivia Green and didn't seem to draw suspicion to herself.

The second time was again at Club Atlantis. That time, she was given a spot at the poker table. She came away from both games with an extremely nice sum of cash. She knew it would take time, a lot of work, and whole lot of luck, but she had hoped that after she had won a significant amount of money, she could stop before she aroused too much suspicion. She was then going to put the winnings into various high-yield investments that she had been carefully researching. Any money that was made off these investments would go back into Queen Industries accounts a little at a time.

Not a perfect plan, by any means; after all, it was quite literally a gamble, but it was all she had, and she was willing to see it through at all costs. She did not like deceiving Oliver, but once she had made up her mind to buy the weapons, there was just no going back. And now, especially since he had found out she stole the money, she was determined to win back his trust as well as the money as quickly as she could.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

Chloe was brought back to the present, when the cab driver pulled in front of the Ace of Clubs. She paid her fare, thanked the driver, and then quickly walked into the building.

Once inside, she rode the elevator up to the top floor and entered the dining room. She gave her alias to the hostess, and just as the caller said, was led to her reserved table. She looked at her watch to note the time. Five after ten, it read; forty-five minutes to go. She had knots in her stomach as always and wasn't really hungry, but knew she should eat something, particularly if she was going to drink any alcohol tonight. And she was sure she would, as it helped to calm her nerves. She looked through the menu.

When the waiter came for her order, she ordered a house salad and for now just drank a glass of water. She just couldn't do anything more at this point. She ate the salad slowly along with the bread they had put on table, trying to kill time. A couple of times she noticed a few men looking her way, but she did not dare make eye contact with them. She didn't want anyone to come over and try to make conversation with her. She knew it probably looked strange that she was dining alone.

At precisely the exact time, she asked her waiter if she could speak to the Sommelier, and went through with her prior instructions. As on cue, after she mentioned the password, _Chateau Margaux_, he led her to a fancy wooden door back near the kitchen that read Cave à Vin, which she knew was wine cellar in French. Paschal took out a key from his pocket and unlocked the door.

Thankfully they walked quickly through the dark and chilly room passing the hundreds of wooden racks of wine till they came to another huge door. He then proceeded to knock on it. It was opened almost right away and Chloe was ushered inside to a corridor, where a man spoke to her. She could hear a lot of noise in the background.

"And you are Ms. Olivia Green?" She nodded her head in response. "May I please see you purse, and your ID, Miss?" which of course came as no surprise to Chloe. "You have a seat at the Blackjack table tonight. Just go right this way," he said pointing off toward his right.

She followed his direction and pushed aside the heavy curtain that led into the noisy casino which was already quite full of people. Some were sitting at tables, some just standing around watching, and others were gathered at the bar that was off to the side of the room.

Chloe decided it was time to calm the nerves, so she went up to the bar first, to get a drink before she began her game.

"What will it be, Miss?" the bartender asked.

"I'll take a glass of your pinot grigio, please," she said, and thanked him when he handed it to her. She now tried to mentally psyche herself up for what lay ahead of her.

Instead, Chloe was startled out of her thoughts when a tall man dressed in a suit approached her and said, "Ms. Green? Would you please come with me for a moment?"

It had not actually been a request, but more like a demand, because Chloe was not able to decline or resist as he took her by the arm and led her away from the bar.

Everything happened so fast Chloe didn't have time to react. She tried to remain calm and clear-headed, noting that they were walking towards the cashier's room, where her escort nodded to a bodyguard who then stepped aside from the door. Her tall guide, took a set of keys from his pocket, and then proceeded to unlock the door. From there they went to the back of the room where he unlocked another door, which in turn led to a long corridor.

_What the hell? It is like a damn maze in here with all these doors and_ _hallways,_ Chloe thought to herself. She had been at the Ace of Clubs many times over the years and was amazed that all these secret rooms even existed. Not sure where she was being taken, she concentrated on the route, just in case she had to make a quick getaway.

"What is this all about?" She asked indignantly, hoping her voice didn't sound as anxious as she was.

"The boss wants to meet you," he said. Now they walked to the very end of the hallway arriving at a door which had, no great surprise there, another bodyguard in front of it. When they approached, he stepped out of the way and then instead of unlocking the door, the tall man simply knocked on it.

"Come in," was the gruff reply.

Still holding Chloe's arm, the man opened the door and led her in. The room had a strong smell of cigar present, and it was almost hard to see because of the cloud of smoke hanging over the room. Chloe had to fight off a wave of nausea.

When the cloud cleared, she looked around and was able to see the rather lavish and expensive decor the room held. It was furnished with a huge well-stocked bar on one side and television screens lining the opposite wall, where it was evident, that every gaming table in the outer casino was being filmed. In the center of it all was an imposing man whom she instantly recognized as Bruno Mannheim, sitting in a big leather chair at a very large wooden desk filled with papers and wads of cash. Behind him stood, almost as if he were at attention, the largest man she had seen all night, his hands folded in front of his muscular frame which in turn caused the biceps on his arms to bulge.

She brought her attention immediately back to Bruno. This was exactly why Chloe was grateful for her disguise. She was pretty sure he would not remember her, but she had not wanted to take any chances. The sight of him, sitting in his big chair looking all smug, made her wish Doomsday had gotten a hold of him too. _What a dick! _she thought to herself.

"Sit, sit," Bruno motioned to her. The man, who had led her to this room, pushed Chloe towards one of the chairs placed in front of the desk. She reluctantly sat down.

"I would ask you if you would like a drink, Ms. Green but I see you already have one." Bruno said to her.

Despite the drink, Chloe's mouth was dry, so she just nodded her head. She also was concentrating hard to keep her hand from shaking so she wouldn't spill it, partially from fear, but mostly from anger and disgust. Shifting in the chair, she could feel her gun rub against her thigh. She had to hold back the desire to get it out and blow his brains out right here and now.

Bruno nodded to the tall man, who subsequently turned around and quickly left the room.

"Well, Ms. Green, sorry for the little interruption to your evening, but I like to take the opportunity whenever I can to meet our clientele. Especially the new ones," he spoke in a feigned friendly manner. "The name is Mr. Mannheim, but you can call me Bruno."

"So you're like the Welcome Wagon for wagerers?" she said with a false bravado, trying to cover her revulsion.

"Heh, heh, I like that. I'm gonna have to remember that one," he snickered and looked towards his bodyguard. "Don't let me forget that, okay?"

The serious looking guard never changed his expression, but just nodded his head at his boss.

"So, are you part of the Green family that dabbles in the real estate market?" he asked as he turned back to Chloe.

She carefully took a sip from her drink. "No, you must have me confused with someone else. My family is involved in the pharmaceutical industry. We dabble in drugs. . . the legal ones. At least, that's what I will personally admit to on record." Chloe replied, trying to play it cool. She was grateful that she took the time to be thorough in creating Olivia Green's so-called life, because she was confident that he had investigated her background and was trying to trip her up.

Again, he laughed. He took a puff from his cigar and said, "I like you. But tell me how a young, pretty thing like you, got to be so good at cards. You have been on quite a roll, I hear."

"Well, after I graduated from school, Daddy wasn't as generous with the allowance money as he had once been, so I had to get a little creative with making a living since I couldn't really picture myself slaving away in the corporate world. So, I found this way that I could make money and have a lot of fun doing it. Surely you know that Paul Newman's character in the movie "The Color of Money" said that 'money won is twice as sweet as money earned.'" Well, I just so happen to subscribe to that philosophy."

She continued, "I like nice things and so I had a lot of motivation to, let's say. . . perfect my craft. In other words, I play. . . a lot. As far as being on a roll, they say, 'Good luck needs no explanation' so I don't question it; I just run with it, and bet on it whenever I get the chance."

"You are a spunky little gal, I'll give you that."

"I will take that as a compliment," Chloe replied, smiling in a beguilingly way at him, trying to win his trust.

"I'll let you get back to the fun and games, but maybe sometime you can teach me your secrets, Ms. Green. You could give me a private lesson. I would sure like to get to know you better," he said as he winked at her.

Chloe had to fight back the bile that was rising in her throat. The thought of spending any time alone with this man made her physically ill.

"My only secret," she leaned in closer to his desk freely showing off her cleavage from her low-cut dress, "is that I once heard that if after the first twenty minutes into a game, you don't know who the sucker at the table is, then it is you. And I just always make sure that it is definitely not ever me. Believe me when I say, I am no sucker."

She rose from her seat just then. "Thank you for putting out the welcome mat . . . uh, Bruno," she said forcing herself to even speak aloud his name.

"Believe me when I say, the pleasure is all mine. I look forward to seeing you again soon. I'll get Tony to escort you back out to the casino."

He pressed a button on his desk and within moments the same man who brought her to this office appeared in the room to take her out of there.

As she turned toward the door, Chloe glanced up at one of monitors on the wall and glimpsed briefly at a dark haired man out on the casino floor who in some way seemed familiar to her. She wished she could study the screen for a moment longer, but Tony was already leading her towards the door.

_Must be my imagination_, she thought._ I will be glad to get out of here. _

She was sure that she was under suspicion for winning so much money, but she hoped that she had passed his scrutiny.

As soon as she was out the door, however, Bruno picked up the phone on his desk. Placing a call, he ominously spoke into the receiver and said, "Keep an eye on her; got that?" Then he slammed the phone down.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

While Chloe was in Bruno's private office, Oliver managed to make his entrance into the casino, going through the same basic procedures as Chloe and using the password that Emil had discovered through his hacking and the identification that was created for him. He quickly looked around for her as soon as he pulled back the heavy curtain, and almost panicked when he did not see her among the crowds of people.

He had been put down for the roulette table, and was led over there.

Oliver was no stranger to gambling. He had done quite a bit of it actually, during that destructive period of his life and because of his usual drunken state back then, didn't usually come out ahead. Tonight his mind was definitely not on the game, although that was not due this time to being inebriated; he just couldn't care less and he quickly lost his money, as he was constantly scanning the room for any signs on Chloe.

He walked over to bar to get a drink, trying to decide what to do next. He was almost in a desperate state thinking that Bruno must have kidnapped Chloe, in the time between when she got into the casino and when he did.

Still contemplating his options, Oliver happened to glance over at the cashier's window and was shocked when he saw Chloe and a tall man walk out a side door of the room. He breathed an audible sigh of relief when he saw that she didn't look any worse for wear, so he was grateful that she had not been hurt. He wondered where she had been, though.

He watched as the man escorted her over to a blackjack table, and then left her alone. He, in the meantime, sauntered around the room feigning interest in some of the games being played at the various tables, all the while keeping Chloe in his eyesight. She had clearly gotten down to business and didn't waste any time taking over the game. He was reluctantly talked into another try at the Roulette Wheel, so again he gave a half-hearted try at it before once more losing his money. By the time he finally felt like it was safe enough to walk over to observe her game, she already had a rather large stack of chips in front of her.

So engrossed in the game, Chloe did not notice Oliver come up behind her at the blackjack table, not that she would have recognized him right away with his getup. He stood behind the others who were intently watching the game.

Chloe looked at her hand, setting the cards down on the felt table in front of her and placing her hand on top, indicating to the dealer that she would hold. After the dealer went around to the other players at the table offering up cards, she again placed her bet. After all hands were turned over, the dealer, said "We have a twenty-one," referring to Chloe, who then had the pile of chips in front of her grow even larger, while at the same time a gentlemen at the table lost all of his chips on that very same hand. The forlorn man stood and excused himself as he left the table.

The crowd that had gathered around the table broke into applause. Still a bit unnerved by her interrogation from Bruno, whom she knew was suspicious because she was winning so much, but couldn't prove anything, turned for a moment to look back at her cheering section. She felt now more than ever, that she was being intensely watched for any signs of cheating. She did a double-take, and then had to stifle a gasp when she noticed, standing behind her, a dark haired man with a mustache, dressed in a suit and holding a drink in his hand. He stared at her with the most intense brown eyes that she knew could only belong to one person - Oliver.

_So he was the familiar figure I saw on the television monitor in Bruno's office! _She had not been imagining things!

"Well played, Ms. Green, isn't it? I believe we met in Monte Carlo last year. Do you remember me, Max Worthington? I know you're on a winning streak here, but I would love to buy you a drink for old time's sake," Oliver said wanting to get her away from there but clearly trying not to blow her cover.

After recovering from her initial shock at seeing him there, Chloe replied as sweetly as she could manage, "Why yes, I do remember you Mr. Worthington. If I recall correctly, I pretty much took the shirt off your back at the poker tables. Nice to see you again. Wouldn't you like a chance to try and win some of your money back? We seem to have a sudden opening at this table," she said as she gestured to the now empty seat next to her.

"Yeah, last time we were together, you pretty much took me for all I am, uh worth, so to speak. I think I just may be out of my league against you, but about that drink. . ." he left the sentence unfinished as those eyes of his practically bore holes into Chloe, so intently was he glaring at her.

Clearly sensing that he wouldn't leave her alone, she knew that she had no choice but to go with him. She did not want to draw anymore unwanted attention to herself. She looked over at the dealer and said as she rose from her seat, "I'm just going to sit out a few hands." Looking around the table, she spoke to the other players, "If you all will excuse me please, I am going to quickly catch up with an old acquaintance." She picked up her chips and put them in her purse.

"You hurry back now, darling," a refined looking older woman said in a sickening sweet southern voice, "We want a chance to win back our money." Chloe was quite certain that hers was not a friendly request.

She grabbed Oliver's arm trying not to squeeze the life out of him and led him over to the bar.

"Single malt on the rocks," she said to the bartender trying to keep her voice steady. She knew she needed a stronger drink than wine right about now.

"I'll have the same," replied Oliver, as he placed his empty glass down on the bar.

As soon as the bartender poured their drinks, Oliver said, "I would like to go ahead and close out my tab." He knew he wanted them to get out of there as soon as possible

Chloe once again led Oliver by the arm to a table in a more secluded area of the otherwise crowded and loud room. They both sat down.

Knowing that cameras were all around and that she was being watched, she faked a smile for all she was worth. Speaking through gritted teeth, she looked around the room making sure no one could overhear their conversation. "What the hell do you think you are doing?"

Oliver feigned a smile as well, although his came across more like a smirk, replied, "I could ask you the very same thing, except I am going to rephrase it. What the_ fuck_ are you doing? What were you thinking?" He too looked around, and said, "Do you know how dangerous these people are, what they could do to you, if they even think you are conning them out of their money?"

"I'm a big girl Ollie. I know exactly what I am doing. How did you find out where I was and how precisely did you get in here?" Chloe asked, not quite as harsh as before.

"Well, I knew you didn't have a damn hair appointment and you were up to something. Let's just say, I have my ways, same as yours," he replied, not wanting to tell her his methods. Knowing her the way he did, he had a feeling he would maybe have to resort to using them again.

"I am just trying to get your money back. I told you before, I _borrowed_ the cash. I always intended to pay it back," she said defiantly as she took a sip of her drink, again looking around as she spoke. She looked uneasily at one of the burly bodyguards that worked the casino, who seemed to be staring intently at the two of them.

"I don't give a shit about the money," he emphatically spoke, his eyes blazing. He grabbed her arm, not caring if anyone was watching. "You are all I care about." He almost told her he loved her, right then and there, but held back as he knew she wasn't ready to hear that yet.

Chloe softened her gaze towards him, but said stubbornly, "I was only trying to make things right."

"Well the only way you can do that is if you leave with me right now and never, and I mean never, come back to one of these places again."

Before she could reply, the two of them were startled when the bodyguard she had previously noticed across the room appeared right beside them.

"Everything all right, Miss?" he asked in a deep voice.

"Oh, yes, uh, everything is fine," Chloe managed to say trying to regain her composure.

Oliver stood up to face the towering figure, but had to look up to him as he was much taller. And wider for that matter, he also noted. Trying to play cool, he winked as he said, "The lady and I are old friends and I think we are just going to go somewhere and get reacquainted, if you know what I mean."

Staring down at Oliver with a menacing face, he again spoke in his deep voice, "I'm not sure the little lady wants to go."

Chloe, fearing for Oliver's safety, rose up as well and put her arm on his and spoke to the man. "Oh, I definitely want to go with him. He's helping me finance one of my latest business ventures," thinking to herself how that was more true than not. She smiled flirtatiously at the man.

The large man didn't speak, but glared at the both of them one last time, before stepping out of their way. They wasted no time walking away.

"Let's get the hell out of here," Oliver whispered to her. Chloe finally admitted to herself that she had probably "pressed her luck" more that she should, simply nodded her head in agreement.

He led them towards the direction of the door.

Chloe stopped abruptly in her tracks and said, "No, wait. I have to cash in my chips."

"To hell with the chips, Chloe. Let's just get out of here while we can," Oliver replied emphatically, trying again to lead her to the exit.

"I am not leaving here without the money," she insisted, refusing to budge.

Oliver did not want to make a scene and knew when he was beat; she was not going to back down, so he walked with her over to the cashier's window.

She hesitated just a moment before she looked over at Oliver, then back towards the Blackjack table. She somewhat reluctantly handed over all her chips, as a part of her wanted to return to the game. She honestly felt that given time she could have made a major dent in her debt to Oliver, but he had just made it very clear he didn't want the money that way.

She noticed the bodyguard from earlier was now whispering to another shady looking guy in a suit wearing a headpiece over his ears, the both of them looking over their way. Now she was rethinking the whole, cash the chips thing. Maybe they should have left when they had the chance.

"Are you sure you want to cash in, Miss," the cashier said. "The night is still young."

"I got a better offer," she smiled as she nodded her head toward Oliver.

"Looks like you did quite well for yourself tonight," the woman said referring to the winnings she was now counting out for Chloe, but also alluding to the tall, dark, handsome man standing next to her, whom she was stealing glances at behind her window.

_If you think he looks good now, you should see him as a blond_, Chloe mused to herself, as she too glanced over at Oliver.

She turned her attention back on the cashier. C'mon_ hurry up._ She wished she would stop talking and just hand over the cash.

Once again, they were met with stares by those running the show, so as soon as the money reached her hands, they headed for the exit. Outside the initial door to the casino, the man that had the headset on, suddenly appeared at the end of the hall, and called to Chloe and Oliver. "Hey, the boss would like to have a word with you two. Come with me." He started walking rapidly towards them.

Oliver grabbed a hold of Chloe's arm and they raced past him before he could react, knocking him off balance and into the wall. They found a stairwell, and after Chloe stopped for a moment to take off her high heels, ran down it as fast as they could. Peeking out an exit door, they found they were in a dark parking garage. They carefully darted between the parked cars, weaving in and out of them whenever they saw that the coast was clear.

Oliver stopped quite suddenly alongside a large SUV and put a finger over his mouth motioning for Chloe to be quiet. They both peeked around the corner of the vehicle as they observed some of Bruno's men come out of the stairwell door and speak to a security guard who came running up when they yelled to him. They overheard the men giving descriptions of Chloe and Oliver's disguises and Bruno's orders that they were to be found at all costs. This betrayed the obvious fact that the guard was on the mob's payroll as well and could not be trusted. The men scattered and went off in different directions.

When all was quiet again, Chloe and Oliver left the safety of their hiding spot and went around the corner of a wall. There, they quite literally ran into two other mob associates. Oliver, used to his intense workouts and training, thought he would have no trouble getting in a few good hits to these men despite their rather large size. Unfortunately his punches didn't even cause the men to flinch. Fortunately for Oliver, because of their large size, they were much slower to react so his lithe stature allowed him to dodge all their blows.

Everything was happening so fast that Chloe didn't have a chance to reach for her gun, so she instead used her diminutive but powerful frame, to trip one of the men who by turn, fell into the other, causing them both to slam into a car, thus setting off its blaring alarm. They used this loud distraction and the shocked reactions of the henchmen to escape outside the garage and race across the street to where Oliver had left his car. He was glad he went with his gut and had not parked using the club's valet service. He had a feeling they would maybe have to make a fast getaway, which was indeed what they needed to do right now as the shouting they heard was getting much closer.

They managed to jump in the car, slam the doors, and speed away just before the mobsters reached the curb. They buckled their seat belts as Oliver hastily accelerated his car putting quite some distance between them and the men who had gotten out their guns preparing to shoot at them. It was no use. The car was now out of sight.

They both laughed nervously as Oliver, looking in his rear view mirror making sure they weren't followed, finally breathed a sigh of relief and said, "That was fun, where should we go on our next date?"

"Seriously, Ollie, I was doing fine, until you showed up."

"Fine? When I discovered your plans, I also stumbled on to the fact that your 'friend' Bruno had placed a hit on you. I don't know when they were going to do it, but I wasn't taking any chances that it might be tonight."

"Are you serious? A hit?" She asked incredulously.

Oliver looked over at her and nodded.

"Geez. And here I thought he and I were tight," she replied sarcastically. "Well, I appreciate your concern, but I had everything under control," Chloe said as she hiked up her dress and removed the gun from her garter belt holster, holding it up for him to see.

"Holy shit, Chloe!" Oliver exclaimed as he fought to straighten the car after he accidentally swerved a bit off the road from the shock. "Is that thing for real?"

"Oh yes. It is most definitely real," Chloe replied as she admired the gun for a moment more. She emptied the cartridges of its bullets and placed everything safely inside her purse.

"Since when did you start packing heat? Are you hiding anymore weapons under there?" he asked, suddenly thoroughly aroused at this new side of Chloe, as he placed his hand on her thigh and tried to slide up her dress.

She swatted his hand away. "I'm not stupid, Ollie. I knew I was 'playing' with the big boys. I wasn't going in there completely naive, you know."

"Damn! You are armed and dangerous alright." His voice calmed, and he said to her touchingly, "Still, next time come to me and let me help. I'm on your side, you know." He looked over at her. "Always. No matter what."

"I know you are," she softly agreed. "It's just hard for me. I am used to being on my own. It's been that way for a long time now."

"You are not alone anymore," he said. He wanted to tell her, as far as he was concerned she would never be alone again, but he did not want to scare her off. So, trying to lighten the mood, he said, "And you'll always have Olivia and Max."

"No, I think we can say goodbye to Olivia Green," she sighed. "I'll have to erase all traces of her in cyberspace, maybe get rid of her, permanently, so to speak, so Bruno won't keep looking for her. We should probably do the same thing to Max Worthington."

"Good idea," Oliver agreed.

Chloe took off the wig, placing it in her lap, and running her fingers through her own hair, shook her head, grateful to be free from the hairpiece.

"Hey, I kind of like you as _Olivia Green_," he jokingly said emphasizing the name.

Chloe sheepishly began, "Yeah, about the name . . ." She was unable to finish her sentence because even she couldn't fully explain to herself why she had chosen it.

"I think the red hair fits your personality, by the way," he said momentarily letting her off the hook.

Chloe looked over at him and rolled her eyes. "Well, I myself definitely prefer _you_ as a blond," she said as she reached over and ripped off his fake mustache.

"Ouch! That hurt!" he yelled, as he gingerly rubbed his upper lip at the same time trying to stifle a laugh.

"Sorry about that," she said in an amused tone, as she clearly wasn't sorry.

Oliver took off his dark hairpiece, and threw it behind his seat. He continued in a lighthearted manner, relaxing now that they were both out of harm's way. "You know Chloe; let's forget all about the money. If you really want to pay me back, I think I can come up with a way you can do just that. It involves you and that dress, and the heels, that garter belt most definitely, and the wig of course, and-" Chloe cut him off before he could finish, when she playfully swung the wig at his chest.

Smiling at her, he reached over for her hand in the darkened car and clasped her fingers in his. She smiled warmly back at him, as she tightened her grip on his hand, while they sped the rest of the way towards home.


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

In the early morning hours, as they snuggled together in her bed, Chloe thought things had finally turned out the way she had hoped they would when Oliver had walked into her Talon apartment less than forty-eight hours ago. Except, she had to admit to herself that make-up sex was far better than even she could have imagined. Everything with Oliver was better, she was slowly realizing.

The minute they had entered the apartment, they were grateful to discover a note Lois had left saying she was spending the weekend in the city. They couldn't get their clothes off fast enough, which were now left scattered across the floor and furniture on a path leading to her bedroom. They had been thrown off each other quickly and haphazardly in their lustful state of desire as their mouths and hands greedily explored one another.

All the pent up emotions between the two, with the anger, confusion, fear, and relief they had experienced in this short period of time exploded into a passionate and intense union.

Underneath the covers, laying together in the afterglow, his arms wrapped tightly around her soft, naked body and his fingers entwined in hers, Oliver spoke softly to her.

"You know Chloe, I've been thinking, we should get away, far from here, just the two of us, even if it's just for a weekend. You have got to be exhausted from your late night adventures and I am worn out just from trying to keep up with you. It could be a wonderful time of no work, no Lois and Clark to worry about walking in on us, no distractions. And of course think of the amazing sex we could have. Hey, maybe we could put all your newly found talent to good use and play strip poker!" His voice was was becoming increasingly more excited.

She let go of his grip, and turned to face him. She gently caressed his face and smiled seductively.

"I'm not sure if strip poker is such a great idea. I'm _really_ good at the game, you know. You might lose all your clothes, and not just the shirt off your back," she teased.

"I can live with that," he replied smiling back at her. "Who knows what you could do to me. And I'll start practicing the game more so I can get all your clothes off of you, too."

"Just remember this; a royal flush beats everything."

"Oh, I am sure we will be royally flushed when we get done playing our indoor games," he retorted.

She laughed at his comment, and then leaned in to kiss him deeply on the lips.

But then she thought seriously for a moment about what he had just suggested.

"You know, I actually think it would be nice to get away from all this craziness," she spoke softly as she lay back down on the pillow. "I don't think the Kandorian problem is going to disappear anytime soon, and I think we could have a lot of fun, just the two of us. Because that is what were having. Fun. Right?" she emphasized as she turned to gaze up at him, her eyebrows raised. She knew she couldn't afford to read any more into their relationship than what it was. She did not want to get hurt and she did not want to blow what they had, because she was grateful for this much; so very grateful.

"Oh, yeah; definitely having fun. Soooo much fun." Oliver answered back, nodding his head at her in agreement. He would be the first to admit that their physical relationship was beyond amazing, the best he ever experienced with a woman, but he was secretly hoping that she would take down her walls and fall in love with him as he had with her. He felt that every day though, they were definitely making headway, even if it was just one brick at a time.

"I have a brochure for this kind of quaint looking Scottish bed and breakfast that I found at the coffee shop," she continued. "Someone had left it on my table. I think it's still around here in the apartment somewhere," she said as she leaned up on to her elbows and glanced about the room. "Maybe that would be a good place to go. It's out of the way and we could check in under false names so no one will know we're there. It could be really relaxing. I'll look for it later."

"Sounds like we have a plan," he said grinning at her.

She nodded and smiled back at him, before turning around again to fit the backside of her body perfectly into his, as she contentedly closed her eyes, ready to fall peacefully asleep for the first time in a long time.

Oliver, too, closed his eyes, but lovingly stroked her hair. He then ran his fingers lightly over the curves of her body of which he was becoming increasingly more familiar with, and whispered playfully in her ear, "Just don't forget to pack a deck of cards."

Snuggling into him even closer, she replied sleepily, "It's a deal."

The End.

_Thank you so very much to all of you faithful readers who took the time to write such nice comments and reviews, or put this story on your favorite lists and/or alerts or just simply read it. You don't know how much that means to me. It definitely is an encouragement._

_I want to apologize that my action scenes in Chapter 11 were rather weak. I really struggled with writing and editing those these last several days and finally just came to conclusion that I suck at it. I like writing the romance parts much better! I just hope it didn't end up making the story too lame!_

_Thanks again, everyone!_


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